Chapter 11: Upgrading The Divine Artifact! Shadow Of Mystery!
There might be riots on the city’s streets, screams, and crowds of bewildered people fleeing everywhere, but this seemed to have no influence on the peaceful and quiet atmosphere in the classroom where Ian was.
“In the summer of 1942, Hitler launched ‘Operation Blue’, intending to seize the Caucasus oil fields and cut off the Soviet Union’s oil supply.” The history teacher’s voice was like background white noise, lulling people to sleep.
Quite a few insomniac students were freed from their affliction, but for Ian, even if he listened attentively, he couldn’t gain repeated experience points for the yellow student orange profession knowledge he had already learned.
He was thinking.
Thinking whether his Superman old man had really successfully saved the passengers in the plane crash, and if so, how could there be the sound of an airplane explosion and fireworks outside?
Ian was quietly zoning out.
Meanwhile, Madison next to him was doodling on the textbook with colored markers; she drew a skirt on President Washington’s clothes and added two cat ears on his head.
“How’s that?” Madison smugly pushed the textbook over.
“Much more pleasing to the eye than before, right?”
Her attempt to strike up a conversation got no response from Ian, but the blonde girl was used to it and started vandalizing Nixon, the most controversial figure in U.S. history, again.
Neither of them was paying serious attention to the lesson, but the teacher didn’t care about them either.
After all, top students didn’t need watching, and underachievers… of course didn’t need it either. How much money did public school teachers make in a month? Why would they worry so much about the students’ courses?
Just like that.
The class passed quickly.
【You seriously conducted logical reasoning. Though there was no result, it still consumed quite a few brain cells. yellow student orange profession experience points +1 orange
Although Ian didn’t figure it out—why his Superman old man would let the airplane crash—he wasn’t without gains. The system’s performance was still so abstract.
“I’m really worried sick for Metropolis, and it only gives me this little experience points? This isn’t cheating at all.” Of course, Ian’s level of abstraction was no less.
Noon time.
The canteen was as noisy as a vegetable market, but around Ian’s seat was eerily silent. A few girls pretended to pass by, sneaking glances at him, while the boys either looked at his dinner plate with jealousy or helplessness.
For the same price, the portion of Ian’s food was almost twice that of others.
“Damn it.” Sitting across from Ian at the long table, skinny tall boy Sam Winchester from the next class held his dinner plate and stared at the mountain of fried chicken nuggets piled on Ian’s.
“How do you do it?”
He frowned, as if completely baffled.
“Very simple. Just smile at the aunties and greet them with a good noon, and they can feel your pure goodness, thus rewarding you with their goodwill.”
Ian had always been good at sharing, not the type to keep secrets. However, his heartfelt experience and summary elicited a stiff smile from Sam Winchester.
“My older brother has said something similar, but is there a way that doesn’t rely so much on personal performance?” Sam Winchester asked awkwardly. He was actually a handsome young guy, just not very confident in his own appearance.
“Yes.”
Ian nodded.
His response brought an expectant expression to Sam Winchester’s face.
“Just pay more money, and you can get more food too.”
Ian set up his tableware, his tone sincere. However, Sam Winchester’s expression was still not sunny. The boy directly took his food to another table, muttering things like “damn world” under his breath.
“What a strange classmate.”
Ian shook his head and lowered his head to devour his food. Now he was like a starving ghost reincarnated; naturally, he focused when eating.
The afternoon courses were also very simple, at least for Ian. He used time management methods to learn other knowledge and still gained a few points of yellow student orange profession experience points.
When the bell for the end of school rang, the classmates rushed toward the classroom door like beasts unleashed from a cage, while Ian’s deskmate Madison leisurely packed her backpack.
“Oh, right.”
She seemed to have found something and took out a small gift box from her backpack. “This is a gift I brought you from Los Angeles. Remember to give me a separate set of exam answers for next month’s test, okay?”
The girl handed the gift to Ian.
“That’s not exam answers; it’s just that my predicted scope is quite accurate.” Ian corrected her immoral wording while taking the gift box from her hand.
“Same thing.”
Madison shrugged indifferently.
She watched as Ian opened the gift box—inside lay an ancient pendant. The pendant was a cross pendant, but pitch black all over, made of some kind of bone, with an icy touch.
The chain of the entire pendant was also thin yet tough, faintly gleaming with a dark silver luster.
“Although it’s a street vendor item, I always feel it’s special. Maybe it’s valuable.” Madison was boosting the gift’s value, though she might also have a bit of bargain-hunting mentality.
Humans, after all.
Are all like that.
“The texture is pretty good.” Ian originally just wanted to pocket it casually, but under his deskmate’s expectant gaze, he reluctantly put it on around his neck.
The size was perfect.
Just as Ian was wondering if Madison had secretly measured his neck to know its length, his expression suddenly froze in disbelief.
“What the hell?”
Ian was very surprised.
There.
Above the anger bar below his field of view, a new icon had quietly appeared—【slow corrosion】. This negative status deducted one life point from him every minute. Of course, since he had no mana bar or health bar, Ian could only roughly assume this pendant was secretly draining his blood.
He was first a bit surprised.
Then.
A surge of delight rose in his heart. This might be a terrifying curse to others, but for him, a berserker, it was undoubtedly a very suitable “beginner divine artifact”.
“Great gift.”
Ian praised it sincerely.
“Of course it’s great. Don’t you see whose taste it is… This instantly dilutes your bookworm vibe.” Madison was smugly engaging in self-flattery.
However.
She noticed Ian’s gaze was somewhat profound, staring at her for a long time.
“What’s wrong?”
Madison frowned and asked.
“Nothing.” Seeing her confused expression and impatient tone, Ian realized she probably didn’t know anything unusual about this pendant.
“Little punk girl, you’ve got some eerily good luck on you.” Ian sighed, waved at Madison, and turned to leave the classroom under the increasingly baffled gaze of the blonde girl.
“Oh, right, thanks.”
He turned back, gave her a hug, and then left the classroom again.
“…”
Even the usually outgoing Madison was stumped by Ian. She was completely baffled by his actions and only came back to her senses after a while.
“If one day someone tells me this guy is an alien mingling on Earth, I don’t think I’d find it strange.” The blonde girl sighed sincerely.
She straightened her clothes.
Then she slung her customized trendy backpack over her shoulder and left the classroom. The empty classroom was very silent. Moments later, a distortion suddenly appeared in the air.
There.
A bizarre pupil “squeezed” out from space.
“Where’s my sacrifice? Where’s my premium sacrifice?” The twisted, scarlet pupil spun rapidly, emitting a confused yet slightly frantic voice.
